New justice bill 'will not cut crime'

Home Secretary David Blunkett has been warned that his flagship Criminal Justice Bill's emphasis on prison was "unlikely to have an impact on crime".

A report from one of his own top consultants said a rising prison population generated by the Bill would have little effect on crime rates.

The Bill, which has yet to reach the statute books, could see thousands more people being sent to prison but the report by Home Office board member Patrick Carter called for jail to be used less frequently.

"Custody should be reserved for the serious and dangerous offenders," said the report's draft summary, which was leaked to several newspapers today.

"However, further increases in the use of custody or sentence length are unlikely to have an impact on crime or the fear of crime.

"Policies in the Criminal Justice Bill will further increase the use of custody."

Mr Carter, who has previously carried out a review of privatised prisons which recommended far greater private sector involvement in jails, was commissioned for the current project by Downing Street, the Treasury and the Home Office.

Criminal justice experts had expected him to back a similar growth in privatisation in the system at large.

But it appears Mr Carter has instead opted for root-and-branch reform rather than simply recommending private companies should be hired to do the work which cannot be achieved on balance sheet by the overstretched public sector.

It was understood that early recommendations have already been circulated to ministers and the full report is due out next month. The Bill doubles to 12 months the maximum sentence which can be handed out by magistrates and introduces indefinite sentences for dangerous and sex offenders.